Awake My Soul
by mse924
Summary: The Lima kids are reunited in Chicago following college. Puckleberry with a side of Mike/Quinn. Slightly A/U.
1. My heart was never pure

_AN: This is my first foray into fanfiction, so please be gentle. :) None of the characters/brands/places/candies referenced in this story belong to me. I'm not really sure how long this is going to be, but I do have about 4 chapters more or less finished. Story and chapter titles are based off lyrics from the wonderful band Mumford and Sons. Reviews and advice are much appreciated!_

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The bitter Chicago wind blasted Puck in the face as he reached the top of the stairs leading out of the El. Bracing himself against the blast of cold air, he briskly walked up to the corner, stamping his feet against the concrete and glancing upwards at the skyscrapers as he waited for the light to change.

It was the Friday after Thanksgiving and he had somehow been roped into joining his roommate Mike Chang and his girlfriend Quinn (seriously, when did that shit happen?) at some fancy party being hosted by one of Mike's choreographer friends in a condo downtown. What he really wanted to do was order wings and watch basketball on the couch, but the promise of large amounts of alcohol (Quinn) and lonely groups of single girls (Mike) had persuaded him to join.

After Quinn had not so subtly indicated that his normal attire of battered jeans and band t-shirts would not be appropriate attire for spending the evening with a party full of holiday rejects, he realized that this shopping trip was an inevitable necessity. Bracing himself against the blast of cold air, Puck briskly walked up the street to the doors of Old Navy. Taking one glance at the store packed full of screaming children and frazzled suburban housewives fighting over sale racks, he decided that this shit was just not worth it. Turning on his heel and flipping the collar of his fleece jacket up, he took a deep breath and joined the surge back out onto State Street. _Fuck this. Quinn can deal._

_

* * *

_

"Puckerman! You have approximately 30 seconds to get out here before my very expensive and very pointy shoe meets your most valuable commodity!" Quinn's voice shrilled from the living room.

Groaning, Puck flung his arm over his face and glanced at the clock. 9:45pm. He quickly showered and threw on the cleanest jeans he could find and a black t-shirt. Grabbing a flannel button-down he headed out to the living room where Quinn was furiously pacing and Mike was sprawled in a recliner, smiling indulgently and watching Sports Center.

"Seriously?" Quinn rolled her eyes disapprovingly at his attire as he slid his feet into a pair a Vans sitting near the door. Puck snorted and glanced over at Mike, who was wearing charcoal dress pants and a button down shirt and tie. Granted, he was also wearing suspenders and green Chucks, but still the boy was still whipped.

"No time to change! The ladies shouldn't have to wait any longer than necessary to be graced with the presence of the Puckerone! Let's go!" Puck ruffled her hair and headed out the door.

Mike said nothing as he grabbed his girlfriend's hand and led her out to the street. It was going to be a long night.

Leaning against the marble kitchen countertop, Puck surveyed the party and contemplated how to get revenge on Chang and Quinn for forcing him to come.

The party was being held at a high rise condo that vaguely resembled what Puck imagined Elton John's home to look like. Lots of white furniture and zebra-print rugs and weird abstract sculptures. And while the promise of booze had been true (Classy stuff too! His cup had been kept full of Johnnie Walker Blue all night), the choice of females was less than desirable. Lots of over-botoxed and over-dyed middle age women. Puck had outgrown his cougar phase since high school, and with the exception of the odd MILF here and there he tried to solely stick to hooking up with females within a 5 year range of his own age. Not that he was complaining, but he was seriously convinced that his friends had invited him to this party with the sole purpose of getting him laid. Preferably somewhere other than their small shared apartment. The walls in those old buildings are thin and Puck had been on the receiving end of enough Sunday morning lectures from Quinn to know that they did not appreciate the free show he and his lady friends gave them most weekends.

Glancing across the living room, a flash of green silhouetted against the view of Chicago skyline caught his eye. Tight little body cased in an even tighter dress and tall spiked stilettos. _Bingo. _Slipping into his best Don Draper personality(What? Dude is a BAMF), Puck slid open the glass door and stepped out onto the balcony, bracing himself against the cold night air.

"Mind if I join you out here? You look like you could use someone to keep you warm and I would be more than happy-"

His line was cut off as the female turned around and met his eyes with a withering glare.

"…shit" he exhaled as her chocolate eyes met his hazel ones.

Rachel. Fucking. Berry.

"Noah?"

Her face softened for a moment and then immediately hardened again. _What the hell was he doing here?_ Rachel had just arrived in Chicago that morning and was absolutely exhausted. Her new roommate Kelly had forced her against her will to come to this party, insisting that it would be a good way to start forging connections in the Chicago theater scene. Never one to miss an opportunity to advance her career, Rachel had reluctantly abandoned her plans of a bubble bath and mug of herbal tea in favor of uncomfortable shoes and a party full of people she didn't know.

She sincerely doubted, however, that one of those connections that Kelly had promised her was supposed to be in the form of the ghost from her past that was currently smirking in her direction.

"In the flesh babe. "

Rachel sank down onto one of the loungers on the balcony and drained the glass of wine she was gripping. "Whatever are you doing here? This hardly seems to be your scene."

"I came with those two idiots" he muttered, jerking his thumb towards the sliding door behind him. Rachel gasped as she took in the sight of Mike and Quinn, faces pressed against the glass as they watched the scene unfold with looks of amusement.

"Beeeeerrrry!" an inebriated Quinn shrieked as she wrenched the door open and flung herself into the lap of the speechless brunette. "You came!"

Puck whirled around to face Mike, who was sheepishly following his girlfriend outside. "Dude. I had no idea. Q just let it slip a few minutes ago that she might be here. Girl cannot handle her rum punch. "

"When Kelly told me that her new roommate was and actress from Lima, I just knew it had to be you! Aren't you excited to see us? I thought it was too good to be true. I just can't believe it" Quinn screeched, bouncing up and down and clapping her hands like a drunken version of her former Cheerio self.

"Ahem."

Quinn abruptly stopped talking and frantically looked around to her boyfriend and roommate and then back to Rachel, who was still staring at her three high school classmates in shocked silence. "Ohmigod you guys I'm so so sorry I didn't tell you. I just didn't want to ruin the surprise in case-"

"It's a damn Festivus miracle Fabray. Now zip it."

Rachel shifted uncomfortably and wrapped her arms around herself, desperately wishing she had her coat. Or at least another glass of wine. "So…you all live here? In Chicago?" she asked Quinn, who had tucked herself against Mike's side with a giddy look on her face.

"Yep. Mike and I have been living here since we graduated from Northwestern and Puck just moved in with us in August."

"Choreographer. Accountant." Puck blurted, pointing at Mike and Quinn in succession. "And teacher" he finished with a sheepish look. _This conversation is awkward as fuck._

His outburst finally snapped Rachel out of her haze and she managed to meet his eyes. "A teacher? Really Noah? That's wonderful."

"Obviously. Anything the Puckster does is wonderful. Now that you're caught up, how about you tell us why you're here and not off in basking in the bright lights of Broadway."

"Noah, all the stars have to get their start somewhere. After a lengthy and in-depth discussion with my fathers following my graduation from NYU, I decided that the best way to develop my resume was to join a touring company to gain some worthwhile experience. I would much rather be performing the classics on a small stage in front of a paying audience than be performing some student-written show on an even smaller stage in front of an audience that was bribed into the theater with promises of free drinks".

"Were there spreadsheets and timelines included in this life-altering decision?"

Mike snorted with laughter as Rachel shot Puck a look of annoyance before continuing. "And that's how I ended up here. I was invited to join a small theater company here in Chicago after they saw my performance in the touring cast of "Wicked". And the theater manager's sister Kelly was looking for a roommate-"

"And I work with Kelly!" Quinn blurted, her excitement rendering her unable to stay quiet any longer. "And now Rachel's here!"

"And now I'm here," Rachel echoed. "Any more questions?"

"Lots and lots Berry. Let's start with how the hell did you get into that dress."

Before Puck could even get the smirk off his face, Rachel was already on her feet and on her way back inside the condo, muttering her apologies to Mike and Quinn as she passed.

"Puck, you are seriously-".

"I know Quinn. I'm an ass. I'll go find her."

* * *

"Ber-...Rach, I'm sorry." Puck lifted himself up to sit on the kitchen counter, trying not to stare at the woman standing in front of him. _Geez Puckerman. You should probably stop checking out her ass if you're trying to apologize. _"That was kind of out of line."

Rachel silently pulled a bottle of beer out of the fridge and struggled to twist the top off, trying to ignore the presence of the boy behind her. _No_, she corrected herself, _not boy. Man. _Noah Puckerman had very definitely grown from a good-looking teenage boy to a very good-looking man. A man with the same piercing hazel eyes and chiseled jaw. A man whose fingers were currently grazing her own as he reached around her for the bottle and popped the top off with an opener on his key ring.

"I'm sure you're sorry" she snapped as she wrenched the bottle out of his hand and took a gulp, wincing at the yeasty taste. _Better than nothing_. "However, that was not exactly the most appropriate way to greet an acquaintance you haven't seen in several years. A simple query related to the ongoing conversation that was taking place would have been more than sufficient".

"Nice to see that you still use 5 words for every one that's necessary. Merriam and Webster must be so proud of you Berry."

"Noah Puckerman!" Rachel cried, dramatically laying her hand on her chest. "Did you just refer to a well known reference book? Your unexpected career in the education field has obviously influenced you for the better. I would have bough you a dictionary in high school if I had known it would have such an effect on you."

"Don't get too excited Berry. I haven't changed that much" Puck chuckled, glad to have the tension broken. "Anyways, why would I have needed a dictionary when I had my own personal midget thesaurus at my disposal."

Rachel stuck her tongue out at him. _It was good to have him back. _


	2. My weakness I feel I must finally show

_AN: Wowza. Lots of alerts from the first chapter-awesome! Thank you!_

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Puck hadn't seen or spoken to Rachel since the party a week before. After exchanging small talk in the kitchen for a few more minutes, Puck had excused himself to go take a piss. When he returned, Rachel had migrated into the living room and was engaged in a heated discussion with some emo-looking theater kid about which Rodgers and Hammerstein musical had the best score. As amusing as listening to that crap was, he decided that was he should take it as his cue to leave, waiting until he was in a cab speeding home to text Mike to say goodbye. He spent the rest of the weekend on his own, grading papers and trying not to think about how weird Friday night had been.

The rest of the week wasn't much better. He went through the motions at work, assigning chapters to read and handing back graded lab reports and trying not to smack the smartasses in his class. Turns out Noah Puckerman actually liked science (hell it was the only class besides glee he actually enjoyed going to while at McKinley. He got to cut things open and play with chemicals and embrace his vaguely pyromaniac tendencies). After enrolling at Lima Community College in a general studies program, he had managed to build up his transcript and enroll at OSU to get his teaching degree. And that's how he found himself in Chicago now, riding the train back from the private high school where he had started as a teacher in September.

Rummaging through his battered messenger bag he pulled out his phone. Scrolling through the contacts, his thumb hovered over the one that said "Berry" momentarily. He had been meaning to call her or text her or something. It wasn't that he couldn't get the courage to do it (Puck absolutely is not a coward. Especially when it comes to the ladies). It was more the fact that he couldn't think of a way to tell Rachel exactly how glad he had been to see her without making himself out to sound like a complete pansy.

Shaking his head, he flicked his finger against the screen again until he reached Mike's name.

"Hey honey I'm almost home. What's for dinner?"

* * *

"I had coffee with Rachel today" Quinn threw out nonchalantly as she took a sip from her beer later that evening. The three roommates were sitting in the living room, sharing Chinese take-out and trading stories about their days. Puck grunted in acknowledgement as he shoveled another forkful of Lo Mein into his mouth.

Mike shifted uncomfortably from his place on the couch. "How's she doing babe?"

"She seems to really be settling in nicely. Her rehearsals start next weekend and-"

"Get to the point Blondie".

"We're going over to her place for dinner tomorrow. Kind of a house warming thing."

"Super. Have fun."

A fortune cookie bounced off Pucks forehead. "You're going too asshole".

Mike leaned back against the couch with a growing grin on his face. This was going to be a good show.

"Nope. Puck doesn't do dinner parties. Unless there is a bachelorette of some sort involved."

"Whether or not you take your clothes off at some point in the evening is completely up to you, but I would hope that you'd be able to refrain at least until after dessert. Besides, Rachel specifically asked that you come. "

"Well if I already have my clothes off, hopefully it will only be a matter of time before I-"

"PUCK!"

"Dude," Mike groaned, putting his hands on his girlfriends shoulder to restrain her before she started trying to inflict any bodily harm on his best friend. "I'll be there too. We can suffer together. And besides, I've been to Kelly's place before and she's got a sweet plasma TV. We can catch the end of the Bulls game after dinner and leave the ladies alone to their devices".

_Damn Chang and his mind tricks._ "Fine. I'll go. But the second Berry tries to put an apron on me to carve the tofu roast, I'm getting the fuck out of there".

* * *

Puck let out a low whistle as they walked up the stairs of Rachel and Kelly's townhome the next evening. He had expected Berry to be living in some slightly run-down apartment building like he did. He was not expecting a large brick row house in Lincoln Park, complete with an iron fence running along the sidewalk and tiny white lights framing the huge picture window facing the street. As they waited for someone to answer the door, Puck paced around the stoop, completely missing the amused look exchanged between Mike and Quinn. As badass as he made himself out to be, his two best friends recognized when Puck was nervous_._

"Welcome to my home!" Rachel greeted loudly as she flung open the heavy oak door. "Please come in. You can hang your coats in the closet and then you may head into the living room where you'll find an assortment of hors d'oeuvres and beverages."

"Thanks for having us over Rach. I'm starving" Mike kissed Rachel on the cheek as he ushered Quinn into the foyer and helped her remove her coat.

Puck stood in the doorway for a second, taken aback. Rachel was wearing a midnight blue dress that was gathered and draped from one toned shoulder. It stopped midway down her thigh, revealing her long tanned legs that seemed to go on for miles before ending at a pair of ludicrously detailed heels. Her cheeks were flushed from rushing around the kitchen and her long brown hair was curling in soft waves over her bare shoulder. _How the hell does she stay so tan in the winter? _

"Hey Berry. This is for you." Puck shoved the bottle of wine into Rachel's hand and brushed by her into the warm house, shaking fingers unbuttoning his pea coat. _Focus Puckerman. You are a BAMF. Stop being such a damn pussy. It's just Berry. _

"I'm glad you were able to join us Noah. I am looking forward to an exceptionally wonderful evening full of good food and good acquaintances". Rachel pushed the door closed and turned to look at Puck as he hung his jacket in the hall closet. "Would you like a tour?"

"Drinks first. And where's this roommate of yours I keep hearing about?" _Because if I stand here much longer I'm going to start having extremely inappropriate thoughts about your legs. _

"Kelly is in the living room. As are the drinks. I'm going to check on the first course and I'll join you all in a second."

It was only when Rachel walked into the kitchen and looked down at the bottle in her hand that she noticed the label. It was covered in tiny, hand-drawn stars.

* * *

_Breathe Rachel. Breathe. You are the consummate hostess. You will not be fazed. _Rachel stood in the kitchen, head pressed against the cool stainless steel of the refrigerator door. _The wine was just a simple housewarming gift. Nothing more. You just have to make it through one night. He's only here because you invited him out of politeness and Quinn made him come. She probably picked out his clothes for him too_.

The thought of Quinn laying out Noah's clothes for him like a small child, was enough to snap Rachel out of her funk with a small giggle. After checking on the roast in the oven, she reached for her glass of wine and headed toward the living room. _Showtime._

Puck had followed the sound of voices into the living room. A fire was crackling in the fireplace and the coffee table was covered in assortment of food. Mike and Quinn were cuddled up on an expensive-looking leather sofa talking animatedly to a tall redhead. After mixing himself a drink with from the well-stocked bar, he flopped down into one of the overstuffed leather armchairs.

"You must be Kelly. It is _very_ nice to meet you" Puck smirked appreciatively.

"And you must be Noah. Jury's still out on how I feel about you."

"I knew there was a reason I liked this girl!" Mike elbowed his girlfriend giddily.

"Hilarious Chang. And the name's Puck. Only my mom and my Nana call me Noah."

"Noah, did you find the beverages okay?" Rachel glided into the living room and settled herself on the opposite end of the sofa from Mike and Quinn.

Kelly smirked with a look that was eerily similar to the one Puck had given her only seconds earlier. _Damn it Berry._

"Sure did" Puck raised his tumbler of Jack Daniels in her direction and took a long drink. "Nice to see that I trained you well on my favorites".

"It's only appropriate for a hostess to have a wide variety of beverages in order to assuage the tastes of her guests. "

"I'll let you know if you can assuage anything else for me later Berry".

* * *

"Earth to Puckerman!" Mike yelled, snapping his fingers. The guys were, as promised, sprawled out in the den after dinner, watching basketball while the girls gossiped and drank wine in the kitchen.

Puck looked up from the beer bottle label he had been shredding absentmindedly with his thumbnail. "Sup?"

"Honestly dude. What is going on? You have been pensive and broody and shit all night. And since I'm not some chick you're trying to seduce in a bar, it's getting kind of old. If you're PMS-ing or something just let me know and I'll try to find the Lifetime channel on here for you." Mike waved his hand at the massive TV. "But if this is about the artwork I saw you adding to a certain bottle of wine this morning, then I'm all ears."

Puck raised a single finger in Mike's direction.

"That's what I thought. I thought you got off the Rachel Berry crazy train back in high school."

"Um, I think I may have bought the lifetime pass on that train."

"Seriously? That's awesome. Man, I can't wait to tell Quinn. You know she's going to go all matchmaker on your ass."

Puck sighed. _Fuck my life. _


	3. How fickle my heart & how woozy my eyes

Puck pulled his rental car to a stop in front of Rachel's townhouse at 7:05 am on the morning of Christmas Eve, only 5 minutes after the ungodly hour that Rachel had made him promise to be there. The group of high school friends (plus Kelly) had fallen into a comfortable routine in the weeks since the dinner party, getting together to watch movies and have drinks several times a week. Thus far Mike had managed to refrain from bringing up the conversation from the night of the dinner, much to Puck's relief. Quinn had yet to say anything to him either, and Puck still held a small (albeit unrealistic) hope that maybe Chang had managed to keep the information to himself. Honestly, though, he knew that Quinn was most likely just using her evil brain to plot the most opportune time to use the juicy tidbit of knowledge to wreak the maxmimum level of shitstorm in his life. She was an evil genius like that.

Mike and Quinn had flown back to Lima the previous afternoon for Christmas, but sadly his teacher's salary didn't afford him the same luxury. And since Rachel had rehearsals until late the previous evening, Mike and Quinn had "helpfully" suggested that she accompany him on the long ride back to Ohio. See? Shitstorm.

After waiting another 5 minutes with no sign of Rachel, Puck started to get impatient. He hated the drive home (he usually felt a strong desire to run the car off the road into a snow bank somewhere around Fort Wayne) and wanted to get it over with as fast as possible. He contemplated laying on the horn until she came out, but then thought twice about the inevitable lecture that would earn him and instead flicked on the hazards and turned off the engine. Leaving the car double-parked in the street, Puck jogged up to her front door pressed his finger against the doorbell.

Nothing.

_Damn it Berry. Let's get this show on the road. _He started to dig in his jacket pocket for his phone when he heard the locks clicking. The door swung open suddenly to reveal a very disheveled and half-asleep Rachel.

"Noah, I am so sorry. Rehearsals last night ran late and I only just woke up. This is terribly rude of me, but I promise you that I can be ready in 15 minutes so that we can begin our journey."

Puck smirked at her obscenely short shorts and the ponytail that had migrated to the side of her head. "Good morning to you too Rach. Cute jammies."

"Seriously not in the mood Puckerman. Are you coming in or not?"

"I can't really leave the car" Puck gestured to the Corolla parked in the middle of the narrow street. "How about I go get us some road trip provisions and I'll swing back by to pick you up?"

"That sounds like an acceptable solution. I will see you shortly."

Twenty-five minutes later, Puck turned back onto Rachel's street. She was sitting on the front stoop of her townhouse with a large suitcase next to her, looking only marginally more awake than she had earlier.

"Crap Rach, you know we're only going for 4 days, right?" Puck grunted as he heaved her suitcase down the front steps and into the trunk.

"One must never be underprepared for any situation that may arise…" Rachel trailed off, eyeing the large snow bank that was currently blocking her path from the sidewalk to the passenger's door of the car. "Um, Noah?"

Rolling his eyes, Puck ignored Rachel's outstretched hand in favor of putting his arm around her waist and easily swinging her up over the snow bank. Depositing her in front of the car, Puck's hand lingered momentarily on her hip before he pulled away, shoving his hand into the pockets of his coat. "Ready?"

_Well that was unexpected_. Rachel nodded silently, willing herself to ignore the warm spot on her side that was still tingling from his touch in a not at all un-enjoyable way. She climbed into the car and settled into the seat, trying to find a comfortable position for the ride.

"Green tea for the lady" Noah handed Rachel a steaming take-out cup. "Twizzlers and Sour Patch kids in the bag on the dash."

"Tea and vegan candy? Noah, I am highly impressed."

"No biggie. They were on sale." _No they weren't. And I most certainly did not go to 3 separate convenience stores to find them._

"Nice to know I trained you well." Rachel grinned, mimicking his words from the dinner party.

They headed out onto the highway, the ensuing silence broken only when Puck turned on the radio and flipped through the satellite radio. Settling on an alternative station, he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel and hummed along under his breath to "Best of You". It wasn't until Dave Grohl started breathlessly screaming at the end of the song that he realized Rachel had been singing along quietly as she flipped through the pages of her tabloid magazine. _God he'd missed that voice. _

"Didn't know you were a Foo Fighers fan babe."

Rachel's nose crinkled in a way that Puck totally did not find adorable. "I wasn't, but Lucas encouraged me to to broaden my popular music horizons and introduced me to several of his favorite bands." She snapped her mouth shut abruptly.

_Shit. _They had successfully avoided talking about significant others up until this point in their re-acquaintance and Puck really didn't feel like crossing that bridge right now. Not when they were locked together in a tiny Japanese car somewhere in the middle of Indiana. He knew this conversation would be a brutal one and he would prefer to have some sort of escape route that didn't involve doing a header out the door while going 70 mph.

"Lucas huh? " _Seriously dude? What's with the word vomit? _

"Yes" Rachel answered cautiously. "Lucas. A classmate at NYU. That I dated." _Why does this man always cause me to lose my ability to find adequate words? _

_Dated. Past tense. Thank fuck. _"What happened this loser? Couldn't handle the full-blown Rachel Berry experience?"

Rachel mumbled a reply that Puck didn't quite catch. "Care to try that again Berry? This time try using your big girl Broadway voice."

"He was fucking my roommate. And my best friend." Rachel shifted in her seat, shocking herself with the force of the words as they came out of her mouth.

"Shit Rach that's messed up. "

Rachel nodded, silently willing the tears that were pooling in her eyes not to escape.

"He was probably looking for a beard anyway. Dude must be gay if he wouldn't want you Rach. Because you? Are a good lookin' Jew."

"Did you just accuse me of being a cover-up for my ex's latent homosexuality?" _And did you just try to compliment me using a line that is nearly 10 years old?_

"I, uh….yes?"

"We_ are_ a couple of good-looking Jews, aren't we?" Rachel let out a small smile.

"Damn straight babe" Puck reached over to fist bump her. _Did she just say I'm hot?_

Rachel let her smile turn into a full-fledged grin and returned the gesture. "What about you Noah? Any women in your life? Specifically ones that have stuck around for more than one evening."

"Touché Rach. The ladies of Chicago love themselves some Puck. How am I supposed to satisfy them all if I let them stick around for more than one night? That's not fair to all the other girls."

"Your mother must be so proud."

"She is. I let the occasional Jewish girl stick around until after breakfast." Rachel rolled her eyes with exasperation. "But the answer to your question is no. There are no Chicago girls on my radar." _Liar._

"Well that's a shame Noah. I'm sure that there has to be at least a few females in the city that would be willing to put up with you for an extended period of time if you'd only give them the opportunity."

"Here's hoping Berry."


	4. Now let me at the truth

_**A/N: Sorry for the month-long delay.**__**My computer decided to get itself infected with a nasty virus, effectively anything and everything I had saved...including the chapters that I already had typed. Soooo, we're going to try this again. Not super happy with this chapter, but at least it's something.**_

**Chapter 4: Now let me at the truth**

Rachel spent the day after Christmas curled up on the couch of her childhood home. Her fathers had offered to cancel their post-holiday getaway when they found out she was coming home for the holiday, but she had insisted that they go as planned, knowing that a few quiet nights alone were more than okay by her. Rehearsals in Chicago had been draining, both physically and mentally. And while living with the vivacious Kelly was fun, it didn't exactly leave her with a ton of alone time to relax and regroup.

Settling back into her nest of blankets after a quick stretching break, Rachel looked around herself to make sure she had everything before starting the next movie. Plate of vegan cheese and crackers? _Check. _Freshly brewed mug of tea? _Check._ Leaning back, she clicked the remote and smiled as the opening credits of "Meet Me In St. Louis" started. _Perfection._

_

* * *

_An insistent ringing flooded through the Berry house. Reaching blindly for the remote to turn down the volume, Rachel realized that the noise was not coming from the television. She had fallen asleep and the the DVD had ended long ago.

Groaning, Rachel reluctantly unburied herself from the pile of blankets and padded to the front door. The ringing had stopped by the time she got to the door. Writing it off to the neighborhood kids being idiots, she figured now was as good of time as any to arm the security system for the night before starting her next film. As she reached to punch in the code, a rustling noise came from the front porch. Cracking the door open, she was surprised to see a dark form in front of her. Hastily flipping on the porch light, her eyes registered a familiar face.

Puck was sitting cross legged on the front porch, facing the door. He was twirling a snow-covered twig in his fingers and singing under his breath. Reaching forward, he poked at the doorbell with the twig and looked up at Rachel with a goofy grin on his face. "S'up babe? Your Christmas present has arrived." Trying to get up, he stumbled slightly and caught himself on the porch rail.

"Noah Puckerman. Are you drunk?"

"I am currently somewhere between sober and shitfaced. Sadly closer to the former, but hopefully soon to be moving towards the later. Which is why I brought this." Reaching inside his coat, Puck produced a bottle of what appeared to be wine.

Holding back a snicker, Rachel squinted at the label. "While I'm beginning to enjoy this trend of you showing up on my doorstep with wine, did you seriously bring a bottle of Two Buck Chuck? Way to keep it classy Puckerman."

"Nothing but the best for you Rach. Now would you kindly let me in? My very attractive ass is starting to go numb."

* * *

Rachel grabbed two water glasses (_Probably should keep Noah away from the real wine glasses right now) _and dumped a bag of microwave popcorn into a bowl before heading back into the living room. Puck had made himself at home on the couch and was rummaging through the pile of movies on the coffee table. "Sorry to interrupt your evening Rach. Looks like you had big plans for tonight".

Rolling her eyes, Rachel poured some of the cheap wine into the glasses and handed one to Puck before dropping down onto the couch next to him. "Why are you here Noah? Shouldn't you be enjoying your time at home with your mother and sister?"

"Nana Connie and my Aunt Jo are there too. So basically there's a whole lot of estrogen flying around my house right now and I had to get the hell out. I would have called the Changster but him and Q had dinner plans with her parents so you were next on my list."

"While I'm flattered that I rank somewhere near the top of your list of people you enjoy spending time with, a call might have been nice. How did you even know I would be home?"

"One, where else would you be? Grand theft auto isn't your style so it's not like you jacked the rental car and drove back to Chicago without me. And two, your daddies have been talking about their trip at temple and Ma may have mentioned it at dinner last night."

"So you're stalking me?"

"Yes Rach. I'm stalking you. But it's a secret. That's why I showed up on your doorstep and rang the damn damn doorbell."

"As long as you're being truthful. Although I probably should warn you that my fathers still have the Lima PD on speed dial just in case you decide to pull any funny business."

Rachel jumped out of her seat at the bark of laughter that Puck let out. "Jesus Rach. Have we not determined by now that I'm not even close to being the same kid I was in high school? I'm not going to slushie you. I don't see any porta-potties her in your living room. And I have no plans on getting you pregnant with my demon spawn anytime soon. I just wanted to hang out for a while because I like spending time with you. So can you try toning down the drama for like five fucking seconds please?"

Rachel stared slack-jawed at him. "Noah, I didn't mean...I just was surprised. That's all."

"Whatever. Now do you have any movie that we can watch that won't make me regret coming over here?"

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They finally settled on "Anchors Aweigh", since Rachel only had brought home her musicals and Puck had determined that Sinatra was "kind of a player" and therefore acceptable to watch. By the end of the movie, the bottle of cheap wine had long since been consumed, along with half a bottle of much nicer wine that Rachel had swiped from her father's wine rack.

"Rach, why the fuck was Gene Kelly dancing with a mouse?"

"Noah! That's the only thing you remember from the movie? I'll have you know that the combination of live action and cartoon..." Rachel trailed off before dissolving into a fit of tipsy giggles. "I honestly have no idea. That is kind of a ridiculous scene isn't it?"

_Drunk Rachel may be even hotter than Sober Rachel. _Her eyes were shining and a rosy glow had worked it's way onto her cheeks. Her tiny frame was swallowed up in an oversized NYU hoodie and at some point during the movie she had tucked her feet under his thigh for warmth ("You keep stealing the blanket Noah!"). _Tell her how you feel Puckerman._

Rachel sighed contentedly. "This is fun Noah. Thank you for thinking of me in your plans tonight."

"It's nothing Rach. I told you, I like spending time with you. In fact, I was wondering if..." The sound of the Berry's doorbell filled the house for the second time that night. _Seriously?_

"I wonder who that could be!" Rachel pulled her feet out from under Puck's leg and moved to answer the door.

Puck sighed at the lack of contact and reached out to grab her wrist and pull her back down on the couch. "Ignore it Berry. It's probably a serial killer or something. You're safer here."

"Rachel! Puckerman! I can see you guys through the curtains. Answer the damn door." Puck was going to need to have a loooong chat with his roommates when they got back to Chicago about interrupting at very inopportune moments.

A shriek of joy came from Rachel's mouth as he heard her open the door. Moving out into the foyer, Puck saw her throwing her arms around Quinn and jumping up and down. The porch light caught the glint of a diamond on Quinn's left hand.

"Congrats Bro" Puck reached his hand out to Mike, who was standing behind Quinn on the doorstep and watching the women with a look of amusement.

"Thanks man. Sorry for ditching out on you tonight, but obviously I had something I had to take care of. Although obviously it looks like you found something to do" Mike waggled his eyebrows up and down in a suggestive way.

"Subtlety is not your strong point Mike."

"I'm glad you're both here" Quinn cut in. "We wanted to make sure that the two most important people in our wedding party were the first ones to know."

"You want me to be your maid of honor? Q, I'm honored. Although I should probably let you know up front that I don't do pastels or taffetta."

"Pipe down Puckerman. It's not too early to replace you."

_"Never" _Mike mouthed at his friend with a grin and a fist bump.

"Quinn, I don't know what to say" Rachel's eyes were brimming with tears.

"I'm taking that as a 'yes' Rachel. Now let's start planning" Quinn grabbed Rachel by the arm and dragged her into the house with shouts of "Tulips!" and "String quartet!" trailing behind them.

Sighing, Puck gestured Mike into the house. _Universe 1- Puckerman 0. _


	5. Love that will not betray you

**A/N: Thanks so much for all the lovely comments so far on this story! Apologies for the ridiculous amount of typos and spelling errors in the last chapter. I've been writing these chapters on WordPad until I can reinstall Word and it's haaaaard. As always, characters don't belong to me but the story sure does. **

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The rest of the weekend in Lima was filled with Mike and Puck engaging in an epic Halo battle while the girls consumed themselves with wedding planning. Sunday afternoon Puck dropped the couple at the airport in Dayton before he and Rachel headed back north towards Chicago. Rachel had spent the drive flipping furiously through bridal magazines and making notes on a legal pad. Puck spent the drive trying not to think about how much he wished that Rachel and he were the newly engaged ones instead.

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The buzzer sounded through the apartment. Pushing the door release, Puck checked his reflection in the hall mirror and waited. Mike and Quinn had walked to the corner store to get some last minute drinks and snacks. Since they were trying to save money for the wedding, the friends had decided to spend New Year's Eve at the apartment rather than going out to a bar or party.

Rachel smiled shyly as Puck pulled the door open and the burst of warm air hit her. Just being near him sometimes gave her involuntary butterflies in her stomach. He was wearing a dark blue and white checked button-down with a black vest over it and looked unbearably good.

"Welcome to the fiesta Rach". He gestured her into the apartment, pausing momentarily to admire the view as she stepped inside. Even in the middle of winter, Rachel still favored obscenely short dresses and insanely-high heels that only served to highlight her dancer's legs. _She is seriously going to kill me someday._

"Thank you again for having me over to celebrate. I don't think I could have handled an evening on the couch alone or a night out with a crowd. This is the perfect compromise."

"Remember that gratitude when you're looking for someone to kiss at midnight."

With a smile, Rachel began to mix herself a drink. "Depends on how good you are tonight."

Before Puck could formulate a response, Mike and Quinn burst back into the apartment. "Rachel's here!" Mike shouted giddily as he slid in his wet shoes across the kitchen floor. "Let's get this party started!"

The night was spent playing drinking games and cards and talking. As the evening progressed, Rachel and Quinn tried to match the guys drink-for-drink. They both finally conceded defeat and instead started a two person dance party. As the countdown to midnight started on the TV, Quinn twirled her way over to Mike. "Eight...seven...six...".

Rachel gravitated over to where Puck was sitting and tried to gracefully sit down next to him. Instead she tripped on the rug and fell giggling into his lap. "Five...four...three...two...one..."

"Happy New Year Noah!"

"Happy New Year babe." Puck pulled her into a bear hug and sighed into her hair as Rachel squeezed him as hard as her little arms would let her.

Once Mike and Quinn broke apart, they popped a bottle of champagne and toasted the new year. Puck couldn't help but notice that Rachel hadn't broken away from their hug as much as she had just readjusted her body so she was leaning against his side with his arm still wrapped around her shoulders. _He could really get used to this. _

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Sometime around 1:00 AM, Mike and Quinn headed to bed. Puck and Rachel stayed in the living room a while longer, joking and drinking and talking about nothing in particular. Once he noticed that Rachel was having a hard time keeping her eyes open, Puck began to turn off the lights and music and put away the remnants of the food. Assuming Rachel would pass out on the couch, Puck headed towards his bedroom. He was surprised to hear Rachel's steps following him down the hall.

"Noah. I never got my kiss at midnight."

He'd been flirting with her all night. It was kind of a recurring theme between the two of them. One would make a suggestive comment or the other would mindlessly touch an arm. But they had never really progressed beyond those comments or casual touches. But before he even realized what was happening, Rachel was reaching for his belt buckle. The look in her eyes was the scary, determined one that she usually reserved for situations related to her career and, many years ago, Glee competitions.

As she fumbled with his belt, Puck could feel his breath start to speed up and his heart pounding. _Shit shit shit._

"Rach. You need to stop. Please." He wasn't sure how much longer her could resist her. Judging from the amount of alcohol he had consumed over the course of the evening and the fact that the woman standing in front of him was gorgeous and willing (albeit, drunkenly willing)...chances were that his defenses were going to come crashing down if he didn't get away from her soon.

Rachel stuck her bottom lip out and put her hands on her hips. "Come on Puck. Sleep with me."

Taking a step back, Puck dragged his hand down his face.

"I'll...be right back Rach."

He quickly stepped across the hall and into the bathroom, locking the door behind him. Slumping down on the floor, he pulled a towel off the rack and used it to muffle his shout of exasperation. As desperate as he was to be with Rachel, this was not the way it was going to happen. And knowing Rachel, drunken hook-ups weren't her style either.

After taking a few more minutes to compose himself, Puck forced himself to go back to the bedroom. Closing the door quietly behind him, Puck realized that while he was gone, Rachel had curled up on his bed and fallen asleep. Grabbing a spare blanket, he stared for a moment at his nice soft bed with the beautiful girl sleeping in it. _Damn conscience. _Placing a soft kiss on Rachel's forehead, he lay down on the floor and tried to fall asleep.


	6. Your eyes swept me into your heart

**Last chapter! **

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Puck woke with a groan. The winter sunshine was glaring through the window directly into his eyes and his back hurt like hell from sleeping on the hard floor. The couch would have probably been more comfortable but he couldn't bear to leave Rachel's side for fear that she might need his help during the night. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he reached blindly for the bottle of aspirin he kept in the drawer of his bedside table and pushed himself up to his feet. The bed was empty and had been remade, complete with the pillows arranged artfully against the headboard. _Even hungover, Rachel Berry is nothing if not a perfectionist. _He couldn't even remember the last time he had made the bed.

Making his way to the living room, Puck spied Rachel sitting on the couch, hands cupped around a mug of coffee. She was watching the Rose Parade with the sound off through half-closed eyes and was drowning in one of his old Northwestern sweatshirts and a pair of track pants that were way too big for her.

"Good morning sunshine" Puck poured himself some coffee and flopped heavily down onto the couch next to her, tossing the bottle of aspirin into her lap.

"Morning" she muttered, wincing at the sound of her own voice.

Puck bit back a laugh. "How are you feeling?"

"Horrible. I hope you don't mind I borrowed some clothes. Just the smell of my dress from last night was enough to make me nauseous."

"No worries babe. But if you're wearing my sweatshirt that means you're going to have to share that blanket so I don't freeze."

Without waiting for a response, Puck put his arm around Rachel's shoulder and pulled her over until she was tucked up against his side. Arranging the blanket around both their bodies, he leaned back into the couch cushions and sighed. "Much better."

"Noah...I..." Rachel turned to look at his face as Puck stared intently at the TV, pretending to be engrossed in studying one of the floats. "Did I embarrass myself last night? And did we, um, did I try to do anything...inappropriate?"

Puck turned to meet her gaze. She looked nervously back at him, twisting the edge of the blanket furiously between her fingers. "You may have asked me to sleep with you. Or rather, you kind of attacked me and told me to sleep with you".

Rachel's face colored noticeably and she dropped her head into her hands with a groan. The look on her face was enough for him to want to grab her by the shoulders and kiss the embarrassment and hurt away from her. Instead, he settled for hugging her small body tighter to his. "You were drunk Rach. We all do stupid things when we're drunk. At least it was me and not some random asshole".

"Well thank you anyway for stopping me".

_"_Didn't want to".

Puck didn't even realize that he said the words out loud until Rachel's face paled for a moment and she shifted slightly away from him. "Excuse me?"

"I...shit Rach. I've been trying to ask for a while, but would you want to go out with me? Like on a date or something. Fuck I sound like a girl. This is the most unromantic thing ever and totally not the way that I wanted to ask you out. But pretty much the only thing that kept me from taking you up on your offer was the fact that you were drunk and I didn't want you to think that I only slept with you for the sake of getting some ass on New Year's. Not to mention the fact that even by my standards that would be a pretty crappy way to start a relationship."

When he finally managed to stop rambling and look at her, Rachel was staring at him with a small smile on her face. "I'm glad you find me so funny Berry."

Rachel turned so she was sitting facing him. As she spoke, she took his hand between hers and unconciously started tracing patterns onto his palm. "You sound like me. Too much talking."

"That's not an answer to my question Rach."

"I've never been propositioned at 8:00 am before. Besides, forgive me if I'm a little surprised that you finally managed to work up the courage to ask me out. Quinn bet me you wouldn't do it before Valentine's Day."

Puck's mouth gaped open as Rachel giggled and laced her fingers between his. "You knew?"

The gleam in her eyes and a small nod was all it took to break Puck's resolve. He pulled her tiny body back to his and brought her lips to his. Rachel eagerly met his kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Of course, that was the exact moment that Mike chose to walk into the room. "Happy New-". Grinning, he turned and gestured excitedly for Quinn to look in the living room at the couple making out on their couch.

"Damn it Puckerman! You just cost me $50 dollars!"

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**Aaaand there you go. Thanks for reading along and alerting and reviewing and all that jazz. I've already got some ideas spinning around for a sequel, so hopefully I'll be able to get it up and running sometime after the holidays! :)**


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